SEXUAL ABUSE AND EXPLOITATION OF BOYS IN SOUTH ASIA A ...

prostitution or other immoral conditions” is punishable. 202 Although excluding all children
between 16 and 18 from protection, this section at least provides protection for boys and girls
under 16.
4.2.4.2 Exploitation in travel and tourism
Bangladesh has no legislation directly addressing sexual exploitation of children in travel and
tourism, and the country has no extraterritorial agreements with other countries, except for
Thailand to prosecute internationals who abuse Bangladeshi children. The Extradition Act
punishes offenders against Bangladeshi children, and applies only for Thailand
4.2.4.3 Trafficking for sexual exploitation
The SVWCA is the primary law addressing trafficking, although it does not contain a clear
and comprehensive definition of the term. The measure prohibits buying, selling, importing,
exporting or taking custody of a child for immoral purposes. The law also makes it an offence
to kidnap a woman or child. The law addresses “women and children” and the legal age for a
child is below 16, accordingly the trafficked boys between the ages of 16 and 18 are not
protected. The law places primary emphasis on cross-border trafficking with the term “from
abroad”. 203 This follows from Section 5 (i) and 6 (i). The Penal Code, prior to the SVWCA,
addressed trafficking primarily through its sections on kidnapping and abduction.
The Penal Code penalizes those who convey a person outside of Bangladesh and those who
take or entice males under 14 and girls under 16 from their lawful guardians. Kidnapping of a
child under 10 with the intent that the child will be “subject to the lust” of another person, is
considered an aggravated offence. Unfortunately for prosecution, the penalty for trafficking in
the SVWCA is very severe: death or life imprisonment. Rather than having the deterrent
effect intended by the law’s framers, it has made judges reluctant to impose such harshness on
perpetrators without proof of the offence beyond reasonable doubt, resulting in very low
conviction rates.
In practice, however, these laws are infrequently used when a trafficker is apprehended at the
India-Bangladesh border. Studies by two Bangladesh NGOs, Unnayan Bikalper
Nitinirdharoni Gobeshona (UBINIG) and the Bangladesh National Women Lawyers
Association (BNWLA) found that arrested traffickers are usually charged under the
Bangladesh Passport Order 1973 with the minor offence of crossing the border without a
passport. This offence imposes a minimal fine and allows immediate release from custody. 204
4.3 Policy
The government has developed the National Plan of Action against the Sexual Abuse and
Exploitation of Children including Trafficking 2002-2007 (NPA). The development of the
202 Children’s Act 1974.
203 Suppression of Violence against Women and Children (Amendment) Act 2003.
204 Bangladesh National Women Lawyers Association, 1996, ‘Movement against flesh trade; UBINIG, 1999,
‘Fact finding missions on trafficking in women and children from Bangladesh to India and Pakistan’.
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